PORT ANGELES — Thousands of race fans are expected to descend on the Extreme Sports Park on Saturday for the first of two American Sprint Boat Racing events held there within a month.
The rip-roaring jet boats will attack the track in time trials beginning at 10 a.m.
Drivers and their navigators will whip around the 1-mile course with as many as 35 turns in fewer than 60 seconds.
The venue at 2917 W. Edgewood Drive also will host the American Sprint Boat Racing National Finals on Sept. 7.
Tickets for both events are $25 for adults, $20 for military members and $10 for children ages 6 to 12. Children younger than 5 are admitted free.
Event spokesman Doc Reiss estimated that Saturday’s race will draw about 10,000 spectators, based on last year’s 8,500 to 9,000 turnout, combined with a broader marketing effort this year.
Gates will open at 8 a.m. Saturday. Racing will continue throughout the afternoon.
“Get there early,” Reiss advised.
“Probably the thing for [new] fans to know is that this is a time trial,” he said.
“The boats follow a sequence of turns that are predetermined the night before, so the navigator has to memorize which turns they’re going to make and where because every channel is numbered.”
What looks like chaos at first becomes palpable after the first few boats navigate the turns, Reiss said.
Sprint boat teams from Washington, Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia will race the clock for a chance to return to Port Angeles next month for the series championship.
Tickets for both races will be available at the gate, online at www.extremesportspark.net or via several local vendors listed on the ESP website.
The price of admission includes pit passes and parking.
Specially marked Pepsi cans that were distributed on the Olympic and Kitsap peninsulas are good for a $5 discount.
For those who can’t make it to Port Angeles, Saturday’s qualifier — as well as the American Sprint Boat Racing National Finals — will air live on MAVTV and Ustream.
MAVTV is available on Dish and Direct TV and many cable systems but not Wave Broadband locally.
The fast-growing network focuses on motorsports from grassroots to extreme and features family entertainment with an audience of nearly 30 million households nationwide, Reiss said.
“The MAVTV viewer is looking for action, and some of these boats are just killer with what they can do,” said Dan Morrison, Extreme Sports Park co-owner and Wicked Racing driver.
“Some teams have been modifying their boats, so we’ll see how they handle this track,” he added.
“Everybody wants theirs to be lighter and faster, but this is a fast technical track. You’ve got to make sure you can stick to the water to win.”
Sprint boats come in three classifications: the 600-horsepower Super Modifieds, 700-horsepower A-400s and 1,000-horsepower Super Boats.
Reiss estimated that 25 to 30 boats will be vying for the top spot in their respective classes Saturday.
Peninsula Bottling has provided a new timing system for this year’s racing that uses transponders with an accuracy of a thousandth of a second.
In the first two years of sprint boat racing at Extreme Sports Park, law enforcement officials have reported only minor problems — and nothing out of the ordinary for events of their size, Port Angeles Deputy Police Chief Brian Smith said.
“We’ll have extra staffing there day and night,” Smith said of this weekend’s police presence.
“We’ll have additional officers assigned to the venue starting at O-6 [6 a.m.] going to early to mid-morning.”
He added: “We feel like we’re prepared.”
Camping is available at Extreme Sports Park for $20.
Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
